MOSES LAKE — Dr. David T. Earl has been placed on probation for five years, but the Moses Lake doctor can continue to practice after the state Medical Commission found substandard care of five patients, three of whom died. The state Department of Health announced the probation in a news release Friday.

This week, lawmakers will go back to the cutting board in a rare pre-Christmas special session to trim more than $2 billion out of the state’s $32 billion biennial operating budget. And again, public education is on the block.

MOSES LAKE — The Grant County sheriff’s office says a man who fell out of the bed of a pickup truck at the Moses Lake Sand Dunes recreational area died of a head injury. The accident happened late Friday night, and county firefighters took the man to a Moses Lake hospital where he died Saturday.

MOSES LAKE — Campylobacter is on the rise in Grant County. Never heard of Campylobacter? You’ll know it well if you get it. Grant County Health District officials say there’s been an unusually high number of cases of the bacterial illness this year. And the condition is avoidable.

EPHRATA — The Grant County sheriff’s office says a suspect in a fatal drive-by shooting in Moses Lake has been arrested by border agents in California. Officials are extraditing 22-year-old Gilberto Valdovinos Medina to Washington to face a murder charge in the April 17 shooting of 23-year-old Joaquin Serrano of Moses Lake. He was killed by bullets fired into a home.

VANTAGE — If you’re south of Vantage on Huntzinger Road on Sunday and see a bunch of guys in hazardous material “moon suits,” don’t be alarmed. It’s not a real emergency. An Army unit training to help in a large-scale terror attack involving radiation or chemical or biological weapons will conduct a simulation at the old Getty’s Cove convenience store, now closed.

MOSES LAKE — A 70-year-old Soap Lake man was killed about 5 p.m. Thursday in a one-car rollover crash. Wilfred J. Bell was transported by ambulance to Samaritan Hospital where he was declared dead, according to a State Patrol report.

MOSES LAKE — Grant County sheriff’s detectives are investigating a shooting death in Moses Lake they call suspicious. The sheriff’s office says a 911 caller reported finding bullet casings in a street Sunday afternoon. Responding deputies discovered bullet holes in a nearby home, forced their way inside and found a man shot to death.

At the podium Danielle Marchant, a partner with Johnson, Gaukroger, Smith & Marchant of Wenatchee, spoke about domestic violence in the criminal justice system at the Light of Hope program in Wenatchee. The program was a vigil to remember survivors of sexual assault and child abuse.

MOSES LAKE — An 88-year-old Moses Lake woman was found dead in her home early Monday and her son is behind bars suspected of being involved in her death, police said. Moses Lake police Capt. Dave Ruffin said dispatchers received an anonymous call shortly after midnight Sunday reporting a victim of an assault had died. The caller provided an address on the 1400 block of Sunset Drive.

Congratulations Tate Mathison, co-owner and domestic sales manager of Stemilt Growers in Wenatchee, and Brian Vertrees, Stemilt’s product marketing manager, were chosen as distinguished Pacific Lutheran University School of Business Alumni at the school’s 50th anniversary dinner.

MOSES LAKE — The Washington State Patrol says a driver suspected of possessing drugs died in a crash as he was being chased by a trooper and Grant County deputies near Moses Lake. The patrol says 40-year-old David Folden of Warden was initially stopped Tuesday night for a seat belt violation. He sped off when the trooper smelled marijuana and tried to arrest him.

WENATCHEE — The Wenatchee Valley masters swim team finished second at the Lake City Masters Swim Meet on March 5, and a number of Wenatchee swimmers claimed first-place finishes and set new Inland Northwest records. Peony Munger won five events in the 75-79 age group, setting five records in the process.

SPOKANE — Cameron Len Gaunt, the former Chelan man who robbed three banks in central Washington, was sentenced Thursday to 96 months in prison. Gaunt, 28, robbed a Bank of America branch in Omak last July 13, the Washington Trust Bank at 759 S. Wenatchee Ave. in Wenatchee on July 16, and another Washington Trust branch in Moses Lake on July 20. All told, he stole $13,000 from the three facilities. His face was recorded on security video.

MOSES LAKE — Boeing plans to extend a lease at the Moses Lake airport through the end of the year. Port executive manager Craig Baldwin told Grant County officials this week that Boeing wants to extend the lease for more flight testing.

Congratulations The Grant County Sheriff’s Association announced their 2010 Deputies of the Year. They are Detective Matt Messer and Deputy Keith Edie. The award is chosen by a peer vote within the department, and the two were tied for the honor.

SEATTLE — Officials from the Port of Seattle and Port of Moses Lake are talking about how they can work together to promote economic growth. Commissioners and staff from both agencies met Tuesday to discuss possible partnerships. Seattle commission President Bill Bryant says his agency wants to work with ports across the state to increase exports and jobs.